The present invention relates generally to lawn striping, and more particularly to an apparatus for striping a lawn that can be added to the deck of a lawn mower. The method of striping a lawn by using such an attachment is also part of the present invention.
Lawn striping is generally considered to have originated in big-league ballparks where groundskeepers have traditionally created checkerboard, diamond and argyle patterns in the field. Now, most golf courses and a growing number of residential housing are employing striping in one manner or another. The residential striping is thought to make a lawn look larger, more elegant, in some cases whimsical, or just well manicured. Depending upon the type of grass, weather and watering conditions, the effect lasts about a week.
Patterns are caused by the way the light reflects off the grass. Grass cut with the grass bent away from you looks lighter while grass cut with the grass blades bent towards you looks darker. While mowing at different heights or fertilizing in alternate areas of the yard can achieve a somewhat similar effect, most professionals have heretofore preferred a method that involves mowing and rolling. Many professional groundskeepers use old-fashioned reel mowers to cut a stadium""s grass, with a lawn roller attached just behind the blades of the mower to bend the grass down.
Increasingly, lawn mower manufacturers are manufacturing riding mowers with full-width rollers mounted to the rear of the mower to make striping easier. Except possibly in the case of a very heavy self-propelled walk behind mower, the mower must be a rider, and the roller must support substantially the full weight of the mower so that the pressure forces the grass down and away, in the direction the mower is traveling. The roller is attached to the rear of the mower deck to support the weight of the deck. Sometimes a length of chain is pulled behind the roller-equipped mower to allegedly enhance the effect.
The problems with rollers is that they are relatively expensive to replace and repair, some mowers and mower decks cannot support or be easily adapted to support rollers, and rollers are easily broken on curbs and the like. Furthermore, it is relatively expensive to retrofit existing mowers with deck-mounted roller systems.
It is an object of the instant invention to provide an attachment for the mower deck of a riding lawn mower that employs a brush to produce a striping effect on the cut grass (xe2x80x9ccut grassxe2x80x9d referring herein to the blades of grass rooted to the ground after mowing).
It is another object of the instant invention to provide a method of striping a lawn that is simpler and more efficient than similar methods heretofore known.
It is a still further object of the instant invention to provide a lawn mower with a brush attached to a mower deck in such a way as to contact the cut grass blades, bending them in the direction of travel of the mower.
It is a further object of the instant invention to provide a brush attachment for a lawn mower deck that does not cause the mower to xe2x80x9cjumpxe2x80x9d when the direction of travel of the tractor is changed.
It is an even still further object of the instant invention to provide an add-on kit for existing lawn mowers that is easy to attach, simple to adjust, reasonable in cost, and effective to stripe the lawn being mowed.
It is another object of the instant invention to provide an attachment for the mower deck of a lawn mower that is simple in design, easy and quick to repair, replace and adjust, and efficient and effective in use.
These and other objects are obtained by providing an attachment for the mower deck of a mower for striping the cut grass, and the method of use thereof. The attachment includes a brush adjustably affixed to the rear of the mower deck, behind the cutting blades, and extending perpendicularly across the path of the mower. The brush is adjusted up and down to vary the amount of contact, or engagement, with the cut grass. As the brush is pulled across the lawn behind the mower deck, it contacts the cut grass blades and bends them over in the direction of travel of the mower.